(Belfort working with striking guru Shawn Tompkins at Xtreme Couture.)

Xtreme Couture helped Wanderlei Silva get back in the win column, so maybe they can help Vitor Belfort get back to the days when he was unironically referred to as “The Phenom” and the UFC pre-fight information graphic described him as having “no known weaknesses.”

Okay, so that was a long time ago and the sport has changed since then, but Belfort’s working with Xtreme Couture for his fight against Terry Martin at Affliction: Banned and it may be just what he needs to become relevant again. As he told MMA Weekly, it’s a different ballgame over there in Vegas:

“I think the mentality of Xtreme Couture is wonderful. It’s a great facility, a great group of sparring partners, good trainers. I really enjoy it. Everybody is equal over here. Coach Tompkins is wonderful. I’m having a great time with him and other coaches over here too. I think it’s the perfect environment for a fighter. It’s been a pleasure. I’ve developed my skills and I’m ready to go. I’m really enjoying it and being ready for my next fight.”

[...]

“We need people who stick together,” he stated. “We can fight against each other, but we’re friends. We’re all on the same page. We’re fighting for the same reason. We’re trying to put food on the table at home. There is going to be some time when we get together like a union.

Get together like a union, eh? That all sounds great, until the UFC hires the Pinkertons to come in with their billy clubs and blackjacks to break the whole thing up.

But whatever gets Belfort back to form, I’m all for it. Beating Terry Martin probably won’t be enough to hail his second coming, though you have to start somewhere. Those of us who remember Vitor at his best can hardly wait.

you'll see what i explained [steroid suspension] in some of the comments..

Thanks Rich S- July 13, 2008 at 11:43 pm

from Vitor nut hugger I appreciate the lowdown. I heard that his fight was on the undercard I guess I will have to see it in shitty quality on the internet. so if what you say is true and Vitor cannot fight for Pride (now UFC) does that mean that we won't see him in the Octagon anytime soon? well I guess ill follow the trend

WAR VITOR!!!!!

The Bloc- July 13, 2008 at 10:41 pm

Vitor vs Wanderlei way back in 98 was one of the craziest fight i'v ever seen, lets hope he can bring those fists back!

Rich S.- July 13, 2008 at 6:56 pm

Well, nut rider, to put it briefly...

sometime around his first title fight with Randy.. his sister was kidnapped in Brazil.. so, with a missing sister, his mental game was just shredded to pieces.. he got the quick [LUCKY] cut on Randy, and the fight was stopped.. but then in the rematch he was destroyed through the wrestling.. then he fought Tito Ortiz and lost a decision [that he could've definitely won w/ a little more gas in the tank] and moved on to fight in Japan with PRIDE.. he won some he lost more than he won i believe.. and, i don't know if this is before or after he fought in Japan.. but at some point he got caught for steroids.. and rather than waiting out the suspension and following the guidelines, he decided to fight over seas.. and, as far as i understand, if you break the suspension and fight over seas, you can never fight for the organization [you were suspended at] again.. i think that's how it goes.. so.. at some point he had a few fights in Europe, i believe with Cage Rage, where he actually became a champion..

i think XTreme Couture will be exactly what one of my favorite fighters [Vitor] needs to get back on track..

Fuck yeah! I can't wait for Vitor to make a huge comeback and hopefully get back into the UFC. WAR VITOR!!!!!

Belfort nut rider- July 13, 2008 at 6:29 pm

This guy was the man back in the day. Due to being out of the country I was not able to follow his decline. Will someone give me a brief description as to what happened? If he can get his "mojo" back this guy is unstopable. I remeber watching him mow over guys when he was like 19 years old. I said back then whenever this guy matures he is gonna rule. I hope to see this come to fruitation sooner than later and before never.